Officials from three of the Upstate’s largest companies announced this week the hiring of a person to coordinate efforts to encourage young people to go into science, technology, engineering and math careers.

The Upstate SC STEM Task Force, which coordinated the planning for the new program called the Upstate SC STEM Collaborative, also is developing a website that will help students and their families and teachers discover after-school activities that could enhance their education in those fields.

“We’re going to offer it to the entire state because this has never been done nationwide, and we want to encourage our entire state of South Carolina to be on board with this,” said Marjorie Dowd, director of business partnerships for Greenville County Schools.

The announcement is another step in a two-year process started by Fluor, GE and Michelin as part of an effort to develop a more technically qualified workforce by drawing together various programs working in that direction.

“That’s what it’s all about – bringing people together,” said Nan Dempsey, who is being named director of the program. She will be paid by the Fluor, GE and Michelin.

The project now encompasses Greenville, Pickens, Anderson and Spartanburg counties.

Other partners include Clemson and Furman universities, Greenville Technical College, the United Way of Greenville County, Milliken, Lockheed Martin, ADEX Machining Technologies, 3M, the Roper Mountain Science Center and Spartanburg School District 7.

Greenville News

Clemson educator honored

CLEMSON Rob Knoeppel, chairman of the leadership, counselor education and human and organizational development department in Clemson University’s Eugene T. Moore School of Education, has received the 2013 National Education Finance Conference Distinguished Research and Practice Fellow Award.

The award is given each year to 10 individuals who have gained national visibility by their exemplary research and/or practice in the field of public education finance. Knoeppel was honored for his research and service, which involve the intersection of school finance and education accountability policy.

Knoeppel, an associate professor, has been on the Clemson faculty since 2008. A graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, he earned a master’s degree in school counseling and Ph.D. in educational foundations, leadership and policy from the University of Virginia. A widely published researcher, his academic interests include school finance, leadership and principalship, education accountability policy, education reform, teacher quality and educational equity and adequacy.

From Staff Reports

U.S. News & World Report ranks Aiken campus

AIKEN The University of South Carolina Aiken ranked No. 5 among regional colleges in the south in U.S. News & World Report’s inaugural rankings of the Best Colleges for Veterans.

Its inclusion in the 2014 edition of the U.S. News Best Colleges was based on graduation rates, faculty resources, reputation and other markers of academic quality. To qualify, schools had to be certified for the GI Bill and participate in the Yellow Ribbon Program and Service Members Opportunity Colleges Consortium.

Robert Murphy, director of veteran and military student affairs, said: “We have a passion at the university for being a veteran and military student advocate, with a staff that focuses on helping with information on benefits, opportunities, networking, and best practices for a successful ... transition from the military to the community.”